Expiring medical devices represent significant financial costs to healthcare institutions, but also represent a risk to patient safety. An issue that is many times dismissed as a ‘cost of doing business,’ expiring inventory is a problem that required University of Chicago Medicine (UCM) Supply Chain to effectively engage clinicians and suppliers in order to create a systemic solution.

SOLUTION

UCM implemented a process designed to prevent expiration of inventory with a collaborative effort from inventory management and sourcing teams, as well as suppliers. This data feeds into a dashboard, which is utilized by leadership to track which suppliers, stockrooms and value analysis teams have the highest value of expiring inventory in the next 90 days, as well as total risk of expiration over the next 10, 30, 60 and 90 days. The dashboard also shows the dollar value and number of items expired in the last week in addition to what was avoided through supplier swaps.

OUTCOME

Since implementation of the new process in August 2016, UCM’s expired product rate has decreased by 40%. UCM shares the data with physicians to determine if the inventory may be used in upcoming procedures, thus avoiding expiration. Additionally, they are able to initiate discussions with the physicians to determine whether items expiring should be reordered at all. Expiring product is now incorporated into UCM’s Supplier Scorecard in order to push suppliers to swap expiring product or put items on consignment.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO MEDICINE

The University of Chicago Medicine has been at the forefront of medical care since 1927. It is an academic medical center and not-for-profit corporation based in Hyde Park. Its physician-scientists cover the full array of medical and surgical specialties and are University of Chicago faculty members.